Lean Six Sigma: Step by Step (DMAIC Infographic)

The following is a transcript of the infographic above:

Lean Six Sigma is simply a process for solving a problem. It consists of five phases: Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, & Control. This process is also known as DMAIC (“duh-may-ik”), its acronym.

Phase 1: Define

Define the problem. What problem would you like to fix? The Define Phase is the first phase of the Lean Six Sigma improvement process. In this phase the project team creates a Project Charter, a high-level map of the process and begins to understand the needs of the customers of the process. This is a critical phase in which the team outlines the project focus for themselves and the leadership of the organization.

Define the Problem by Developing a “Problem Statement”

Define the Goal by Developing a “Goal Statement”

Define the Process by Developing Process Maps

Define the Customer and Their Requirements

Inform Others of Project Progress

Phase 2: Measure

Quantify the problem. How does the process currently perform? Or in other words, what is the magnitude of the problem? Measurement is critical throughout the life of the project. As the team starts collecting data they focus on both the process as well as measuring what customers care about. That means initially there are two focuses: reducing lead time or improving quality. In the Measure Phase, the team refines the measurement definitions and determines the current performance or the baseline of the process.

Determine How the Process Currently Performs

Create a Plan to Collect the Data

Ensure the Data is Reliable

Gather the Baseline Data

Update Your Project Charter

Phase 3: Analyze

Identify the cause of the problem. What is causing the problem? The Analyze Phase is often not given enough attention and, without analysis, teams jump to solutions before knowing the true root causes of the issues. The result is teams who implement solutions but don’t resolve the problem! These efforts waste time, consume resources, create more variation and, often cause new problems. The ideal is for teams to brainstorm potential root causes (not solutions), develop hypotheses as to why problems exist and then work to prove or disprove their hypotheses. Verification includes both process analysis and data analysis and has to be completed before implementing solutions. This is the crux of the Analyze Phase!

Closely Examine the Process

Graphically Display the Data

Look for What Might be Causing the Problem

Verify the Cause(s) of the Problem

Update Your Project Charter

Phase 4: Improve

Implement and verify the solution. How will the team mitigate the root causes of the problem? Once the project teams have determined the root causes it’s time to develop solutions. The Improve Phase is where the team brainstorms solutions, pilots process changes, implements solutions and lastly, collects data to confirm there is measurable improvement. A structured improvement effort can lead to innovative and elegant solutions that improve the baseline measure and, ultimately, the customer experience.

Brainstorm Solutions That Might Fix the Problem

Select the Practical Solutions

Develop Maps of Processes Based on Different Solutions

Select the Best Solution(s)

Implement the Solution(s)

Measure to Ensure Improvement

Phase 5: Control

Maintain the solution. How do you sustain the improvement? Now that the process problem is fixed and improvements are in place, the team must ensure that the process maintains the gains. In the Control Phase the team is focused on creating a Monitoring Plan to continue measuring the success of the updated process and developing a Response Plan in case there is a dip in performance. Once in place, the team hands these plans off to the Process Owner for ongoing maintenance.